SKETCH SURVIVAL!!!!!!!!

[Suuper-san]

An interesting idea actually, but I think I'll pass on that particular challenge. Partly because the characters I draw have no base in "reality", in that they have no story or anything behind them, they simply are a picture. If I were to add a name or setting or title etc I get the feeling the complexity of the pieces would grow and I'd feel pressure to reach a certain standard other than just "drawing every day". Which would undermine the purpose of the project itself.
But I'll definitely take up that challenge on other projects for sure. In other illustration projects of mine a lot of the sketches have backstories or plots attached to them so adding a name or title might actually help to develop such pieces further.

[Ryan]

i do like doing full bodies, but then it takes away time from working on the character details. I still really haven't dialed in my drawing process. I feel like I have recently increased the quality of my drawings but it still takes a lot out of me to reach it. I guess that's the standards for one's eye being higher than what one really understands is happening in the drawing. I suppose sketch survival will help me figure some things out, but I think I should probably start practicing some quick sketch exercises as well. Or I should start building a reference library for common things I draw.
day5: I guess she looks like a Clara to me, I'll name her Clara

[Coryn]

Clara it is!

@Suuper: That's partly why I put the challenge out there. People tend to get too inside their own heads when it comes to this sort of thing. We have to train ourselves to pick names quickly and without a ton of contemplation.

An example of this is that I give a "chapter" name to each day in my work log. I don't think about them, I just write them and see what comes out. I've been doing this for years without fail. Some are better than others, but they have trained me to not spend more time on naming decisions than absolutely necessary.

[anonymous]

a

[Suuper-san]

@Ryan I like the face proportions of that last one! Yeah getting the top level quality takes a lot of effort precisely because it's right at the edge of our skill level. I mostly work at sketch level and mid-level to improve composition range and complexity.

If they name then they'll get attached

This...is true XD

@Coryn that's a fair argument although since I generally am quite random with names I've not recently found it much of an issue naming my characters. I usually give it less than 30 seconds and if I don't like anything I've come up with I just use a placeholder and worry about it later XD
But secondly, when I name my characters I usually consider setting and genre, and this in turn makes me tend to daydream unproductivily as I imagine plots and backstory as a result of trying to name the characters. So I consider naming characters to be a writing task and I don't mix that with my art tasks at the moment. I might retrospectively name them all in one go maybe though XD

Day 9: I've got an awful runny nose sneezing cold and really dont feel like drawing but here we are. If I can get through this then it's a victory for the schedule building. An awful sketch but all things considered not massively bad. Looks like my damage control skill is finally almost good enough. Also I can draw casual shoes alright but not high heels, I must be missing some fundamental construction observation there.

[Ryan]

@suuper: thanks! looks like you're not capturing the height that is created by the heel being raised

day 6: after getting warmed up a bit, i was able to finally get into drawing this character. It's like i have to mess around with 3-4 or so mediocre starts of sketches in order to warm up and get into the right mindset. Also symmetry tool is OP, really speeds up the process of drawing a straight on face. character name: goro

[Operative13]

I'll be the devils-advocate here since that's what I excel at 

@Ryan Clara's face is just *chef's kiss* If you were to tell me she's in an anime, I wouldn't have known the difference. The body though needs some work. She's much too thin on the arms and legs giving an anorexic look. The proportions should ideally fit with the rest of the body. I don't see much wrong with the torso until you get to the mid-section. Don't be shy with adding some fat to your characters! Goro is better here, though you can see there's some struggles around the legs, and what I assume is a left foot on a right leg  Reference: https://youtu.be/gl0VUHLJuls

@Suuper Loving the consistency with all your drawing thus far. It has a style that just clicks so well! That said, I think  this particular piece has a line-of-action issue, where the torso looks off compared to the overall body's positioning.
Reference: https://youtu.be/TRMcrElBRsM
A neat guidance I've learned working with my artists is that you can readily tell if your LOA is off by considering the spine alignment and seeing where the body's weight is falling. Even a standing pose is not at all stiff 

Hopefully my amateur critique will aid you fellas towards a mildly achievable goal to work on! Let me know if you'd like further feedback as you go about your artistic endeavors, and I shall be your invested watcher 

[Ryan]

I appreciate the feedback and constructive criticism. No feedback is also perfectly fine, I am a self-generating drawing machine at this point. I am seeing more improvement in my work from drawing daily, so I'm a happy lad. Do not feel the need to comment on something that doesn't truly speak to you.

For feedback, I appreciate being told when you think I've truly been able to pull something off, because it is actually harder for me to get a feel on these aspects. Again, don't go out of your way to do this artificially. I want genuine feelings only.

But, I prefer to not get crit on the issues I don't bring up in my sketches. There is a point where you have to put a sketch down, issues and all, and if one is working at all outside of their comfort zone there will be some. I just prefer to keep most of this private otherwise I would be writing an essay about what went wrong or what I'm uneasy about for each sketch. Feel free to comment on what I comment on as that is perfectly fine to see as an invitation for feedback/crit/discussion, for example, suggestions for warming up.

[Suuper-san]

@Ryan nice #6, I don't think I've drawn that pose from that angle so I might give that a go as some point
I usually draw circles or something to get my body moving. or horizontal and vertical lines, all sorts of calibration work is good for warming up. Mindset is another beast though, sometimes I warm up mentally instantly, sometimes it takes hours. I've written pages of notes about what affects my mood and how to adjust it, and nothing is consistent is all I can say... *shrug*

@operative thanks!
actually looking back I realise I skimped on the guidelines so that might have been half the issue. what with being ill and all that. But yes I've not paid much attention to LOAs very much, I've seen them here and there but not really got the hang of them so I just try and wing it mostly ahahaha. probably have to fix that XD
also the way I hang the clothes on the model might have been half the problem as well as the figure usually looks ok for balance, it's only when dressed they look wrong....

I'm always happy to receive feedback and critique no matter how small or general, but don't feel you have to comment on everything I do
But I do enjoy a good chit chat about technique and stuff like that XD
But what Ryan said is the same for me really

Day 10: still hopelessly ill but did a thing. that being said I had a brainwave/realization that my initial sketches tend to be a tad flat and so the camera angle tends to change when I flesh them out. This might be causing some of my medium level issues where things aren't coming out as I expect. I also get the feeling this isn't the first time I've noticed that issue...

[Operative13]

@Ryan Aye, keep at it! Like any artform, practice takes time and effort. Heck, I've been casually weening myself out of preplanning everything with my stories in favor of more spontaneous storytelling just so I have that progress with writing stories altogether. It's never going to be perfect, but that's what practice is for! I do make it a habit to get feedback whenever I can. You'll find that your most dedicated supporters are also the ones that have the most to say about your work, and constructive ones at that. That said, you're in no way obligated to take people's feedback if it doesn't align with your goals. That's just the reality of things, but that's also the beauty of being the boss of your creations: you make the final call on what's acceptable or not. I encourage you to ask questions that you'd love to get answered if you have doubts on how things are looking or any aspects you'd want to focus on. If anatomy is something you want to improve, ask about it! If it's poses and perspective, make that your focus! What's the thing you have an itch to scratch with?  We'll definitely have ideas about it

The one thing I've learned about MR and feedback in general is to go wild! Everyone's here to help each other out, so don't feel as if you need to curate everything like you would a job application. I know I myself was a bit suspect when I first joined MR, but I eventually learned this place is pretty chill about everyone's personal works. In fact, I feel it's more intimidating if you don't get any responses at all, and the ones that do are often just low-effort posts. It's something we still try to work on around here, but the overall vibe on MR has definitely been better and better over the years!  Now if only we can drag more artists to participate...

@Suuper Nonsense! I comment out of the vested interest in seeing more of these kinds of work flourish! What good is commenting if just to say "Yes it's good," or "No, it's horrible, why did you even post such an abomination, my Lord!" No, my friend, there must be value! Why else would I dedicate an absurd amount of time on an online forum, just to suffer against the wave of low-effort feedback you get from social media or private comms? Quality is everything! And quantity is a quality all on its own! So keep at it, and I shall watch both your posts will great interest 

Just a tad note, I do try to keep my feedback to just new stuff in general. If I've already brought it up, you can always look back on the thread history to see what aspects you can consider 

[Ryan]

day 7: Sam. I decided to do some grayscale on this finished sketch, needless to say I'm wiped man.

Slightly nsfw (small amount of cover on the boobs & belly showing)

Spoiler

[Operative13]

@Ryan Wow! Amazing job!  You really got the anatomy down quite well, and quite quickly I might add! Keep it up! 

Since you're naming all these characters, would you be planning to compile them in a story at some point? You could perhaps use that idea as additional topics for your sketches.  Wardrobes, for example, are an excellent way to convey a character's personality. Action scenes are another great way of getting down poses and perspectives. It really becomes an open book once you start playing around with these ideas 

[Suuper-san]

@operative I have always loved MR for the reasons you mention. it's more than just critique or feedback, but encouragement and friendship :P
I have always felt the only reason I could progress this far was because I was engaged in the community, not because of specific help or feedback (but of course it was helpful)

@ryan woah...just woah XD
the flat colours give it nice pop and the proportions are pretty spot on!

Day 11: still ill, had a headache all day, accomplished nothing much again.
anyways I had the idea to draw Midori from Project Serentedia, the genki girl from week 8. I didn't see much description of her appearance so I had to just guess, but this is how she felt to me when reading the chapter.

[Ryan]

@suuper: ooh very nice, fanart is something I want to do as well for sketch survival. I think the way you handled the overlapping of the hands comes across very well here, aesthetically and adding depth. 

@operative: I didn't have a plan to compile them, no. But I can see how character interactions can yield more ideas for sketches. Depending on what I get into the mood for, I may or may not extend the lives of these named characters  .

Action scenes and wardrobes are definitely pain points for me. To make progress, I'll have to do some prep work outside of sketch survival first .

Regarding the drawing of Sam, I am not to be underestimated huhuhuhu. I already knew how to do something like this  Although it still took forever because I painstakingly drew it    And believe it or not most of it is still making up the anatomy and not really knowing how it works  That's why we call artists illusionists I guess.

day 8: his name is Eric. I recommend you keep your waifus away from him 

Oh, before I forget, I decided to do some 30second quick sketches from photographs today before my survival sketch. I think it helped me warmup (?)

[Operative13]

@Suuper What a nice surprise! That's a great rendition of Midori there! Very cute and upbeat! I especially love how your art style is just so consistent with every update. Keep it up! 

@ryan You should definitely consider creating a world for them! I feel it would be a waste to go through an effort to name a character and make their art only for them to disappear into the aether    If the line art takes a long time, I recommend going for the rough sketch versions. Something that's a quick 5-10 minutes to play around with.

There's a video of a professional mangaka showcasing how he goes about sketching: https://youtu.be/YzlYmpziED0
Another sketching, from a more amateurish artist: https://youtu.be/WkGtvOkKOLY

Obligatory reference:


Just like with my writings, I find it inspiring to see professionals go about the routine in real time so that you can capture that essence and thought process as well. The best shortcut to learning is to learn the techniques of the masters. As it so happens, those techniques are often the easiest. Difficult, but easy when you understand them